We received a nice email from Brandon Jacobson in mid-April discussing how much he enjoyed using our case studies in his classroom at Copper Hills High School in West Jordan, Utah. The quote in his email that that really resonated with me was “Great discussions lead to a more detailed and comprehensive learning.”  In my own practice, I have seen case studies generate great classroom discussion and now there was another teacher corroborating my experience. Shortly thereafter, we were exchanging emails and Brandon kindly agreed to be on the show to share his expertise on how to effectively use case studies in a personal finance setting.

Listen to this podcast to hear Brandon answer such questions as:

• How do case studies help to break down socioeconomic barriers that may exist in his class?
• How does he prepare his students for case studies?
• What does he to to prepare himself for case studies?
• How important are habits to financial success?
• How does he manage the case study process in the classroom?

Details:

• 0:00~0:54 – Intro
• 0:54~2:10 – Brandon’s background
• 2:10~3:28 – Why did he choose to study business?
• 3:28~6:18 – Let’s learn a bit more about Brandon’s students
• 6:18~12:30 – How Brandon deals with socioeconomic diversity in the classroom
• 12:30~16:04 – What motivated Brandon to start using case studies
• 16:04~19:07 – How Brandon taught students how to do case studies
• 19:07~19:28 – A word from our sponsors
• 19:28~25:56 – Logistics of using case studies in the classroom
• 25:56~35:30 – What do you have in your back pocket should the conversation fall flt
• 35:30~38:53 – What are the more important financial habits you want to instill in your students?
• 38:53~40:19 – Utah and financial education
• 40:19~43:42 – Final thoughts
• 43:42~44:30 – Conclusion

• NGPF Case Studies

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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